Maria Begonha

Maria Begonha
Deputy of the Assembly of the Republic, Portugal
In office
2019–2022
Parliamentary groupPortuguese Socialist Party (PS)
ConstituencyBraga
Personal details
Born
Cristina Maria da Fonseca Santos Bacelar Begonha

(1989-01-21) 21 January 1989 (age 35)
Lisbon, Portugal
Political party Portuguese:
Socialist Party (PS)
Alma materNOVA University Lisbon
OccupationPolitician

Maria Begonha (born 1989) is a Portuguese politician, a member of the Portuguese Socialist Party (PS), and a former member of the Assembly of the Republic. She served as secretary-general of Socialist Youth from 2018 to 2020.

Early life

Cristina Maria da Fonseca Santos Bacelar Begonha was born in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon on 21 January 1989. She obtained a degree in Political Science and International Relations from the NOVA University Lisbon. Her first political involvement was in the parish of Beato in Lisbon, initially as a member of the executive of the council and then as a member of the Council Assembly. She worked for the Lisbon Municipality between 2013 and 2016 and became a member of the Lisbon Municipal Assembly in 2016.[1][2]

Political career and controversy

In December 2018, Begonha was elected as the secretary-general of Socialist Youth, the youth arm of the PS. She obtained 72% of the votes cast and became the third woman to head the organization, after Margarida Marques (1981-1984) and Jamila Madeira (2000-2004). At around the same time she was subject to some controversy concerning a falsification of her curriculum vitae (CV) by claiming to have a master's degree, as well as embezzlement through employment contracts she had been given by local councils in the Lisbon area. However, in 2019 she was elected as a member of the national Assembly of the Republic, representing the Braga constituency. On 2 April 2021 it was unanimously agreed by the Assembly to lift her parliamentary immunity so that she could respond to the allegations. In the National Assembly she worked on the Commission of Education, Science, Youth and Sport and the Ad hoc Commission to monitor the application of measures to respond to COVID-19 and the economic and social recovery process. In the January 2022 elections, she was placed 27th on the list of PS candidates for Lisbon, but the PS only won 21 of the 48 seats available.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]

References

  1. ^ a b "Biografia: Cristina Maria da Fonseca Santos Bacelar Begonha". Assembleia de República. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Registo de Interesses: RISTINA MARIA DA FONSECA SANTOS BACELAR BEGONHA". Assembleia de República. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  3. ^ "AR levanta imunidade à socialista Maria Begonha por falsificar currículo". Público. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Ajustes de 140 mil euros, o autocarro da junta e o currículo criativo. O arranque atribulado de Maria Begonha". Observador. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  5. ^ "AR levanta imunidade a deputada socialista para responder por falsificação de currículo". SAPO. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  6. ^ "Conheça os nomes dos deputados eleitos pelo seu distrito: a lista completa". CNN. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  7. ^ "Lista de Candidatos a Deputados" (PDF). PS. Retrieved 4 February 2022.